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Hello, People. I Work.
My kids now go to daycare two days a work, which leaves me with a blissfully quiet house and some time to get things done. Some of the time goes into coordinating the lives of my family… Bug and LadyBug have a seemingly neverending supply of appointments and paperwork and so on. And there are plenty of things that need to be fixed, maintained, etc. But really, the time at daycare is when I’m “at work.” In case you’re new here, I’m a writer. My primary gig is over at About.com where I write about Family Computing. I also write for a few other websites and am in the process…
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Social Media and Monetization
There has been some talk recently about the monetization of Twitter streams. Some of the Twitter divas would like to capitalize on their large pool of followers by selling ads on their Twitter streams. I’m disappointed. Why does everything have to monetized? We spend time with our kids without billing someone. We read books or watch TV or walk through the woods without getting paid. And, hey, we have lunch with our friends without trying to sell them things (at least most of us do). Why is it ok to force ads on people who have chosen to connect with you in an online space? Ads on blogs are one…
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Changing and Growing
It is time for a change. I have been home for more than 3 years now, since before Bug was even born. I am so thankful that I’ve had the opportunity to be home full-time with my kids. It’s amazing watching them learn new skills and try out their first words. I love visiting the zoo and play spaces and having parades around the house. Then again, this has been the hardest thing I have ever had to do. Not just being a mom, which is incredibly and exhausting and exhilarating and scary all wrapped up in a bundle of diapers and drool. I spend a lot of time in…
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WAHM Water Cooler
They say you should surround yourself with the type of people who reflect the person you’d like to be. I don’t think I know those people. Now, don’t get me wrong, I have some fantastic friends. They’re smart and kind and generous and all of them embody many qualities I aspire to. But now I’m at a bit of a crossroads in my life and I don’t have anyone who’s heading on a similar path. I’m having a hard time with it, honestly. I’ve been thinking about this for a long time, but I think the Boston Blogher conference really solidified it for me… I’ve got friends to commiserate with…
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Barefoot Books Giveaway
 This contest is closed. Thanks for your entries! Every quarter, Bloggy Giveaways hosts a huge carnival where hundreds (no joke – there are at least 400 already as I write this) of blogs give away cool prizes. All you have to do is visit, follow the directions (usually quite simple) and cross your fingers. You can start right here! As you may know, I am a Stallholder with Barefoot Books. In other words, I’ve got the great privilege of sharing the most amazing, intelligent, multicultural children’s books with my friends, family and readers. This month, we have released our first full-color illustrated young adult novel entitled Little Leap Forward. It…
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September Book of the Month – Listen, Listen
As promised, the Book of the Month club has begun. The book for September 2007 is Listen, Listen by Phillis Gershator, illustrated by Alison Jay. Listen, Listen is a stunning journey through the seasons, exploring the sites and sounds of a quiet countryside throughout the year. Alison Jay’s illustrations lend a simple beauty to this tale. This is just the right book to read along with your toddler or preschooler, who will delight in helping make the sounds of the season (“shhh, shhh” or “buzz, buzz”) and identifying some of the creatures they meet along the way. Early readers will find the simple and rhythmic text fun to read and older…
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Nancy Traversy Interview
Nancy Traversy, CEO and co-founder of Barefoot Books, was interviewed recently on the podcast, Just One More Book. The interview is interesting; I always find Nancy’s story of the Barefoot journey compelling and I have a lot of respect for her as a female entrepreneur and long-time WAHM (she and co-founder Tessa Strickland started the business from home). While, I was there, I also fell in love with their website/blog. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in children’s literature.
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Book of the Month Club
So… the plan, if I get my act together, is to start a virtual book of the month club here at More Than Mommy. I’d like to highlight some of my favorite books from Barefoot and include activities to go along with the general theme of the book. I will offer a discount on the book of the month, as well as other prizes and incentives over time. I’m hoping it will become a resource for homeschooling parents and for rainy day activities, whether or not you have the book. We’ve got some fabulous books coming out this fall (ok, so we already have plenty of fabulous books available) and…
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I’m back.
There was another “surprise†I was waiting to share, and it’s that we’re expecting our second child (a girl) this June. It was a surprise for us as well! Anyway, the date is approaching and I’m looking forward to meeting her. The Christmas season was quite busy with Barefoot Books, in particular. I can’t believe how many fairs I did! I had a lot of fun getting out there and introducing the company to people who had never heard of us, but I was glad when it was over. Holiday fairs can be tiring, especially when you’re pregnant. Right now, I’ve been laying low, doing some writing with Suite101 and…
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Goin’ Barefoot!
I have been holding off on announcing my latest endeavor because we were waiting on our snazzy new sales rep websites. Well, they’re here and they’re great! I signed on with Barefoot Books in August because I love the entire product line. We’ve got multi-cultural books, multi-generational books, board books, paperbacks, anthologies… we’ve got books with music CDs, puppets, puzzles, games, and even some stationery and giftwrap. All of it is beautiful! Please visit my new website and keep me in mind for your shopping needs… http://cmatte.mybarefootbooks.com